Articles Posted inForex Trading

Leon Vaccarelli allegedly defrauded a total of nine clients out of more than $1 million

In May, former financial advisor Leon Vaccarelli was charged with 12 counts of fraud and money laundering in a federal court in Connecticut. If convicted on all of them, he could receive a maximum penalty of 210 years in prison. After pleading not guilty, Vaccarelli was released on a $100,000 bond.

Vaccarelli is alleged to have stolen money from several clients between 2011 and 2017. During that time, he reportedly informed his clients that their money would be invested in different places, including money market accounts and retirement products. What Vaccarelli actually did, according to investigators, was put the money into his own account and use it to pay his own expenses. In addition, federal prosecutors also say that he also used client money to make interest payments to other investors.

These five brokers have been accused of numerous infractions

National Securities Corporation has been operating for decades and has offices and brokers all over the U.S. Unfortunately, however, a significant percentage of their brokers have been involved in numerous customer complaints. Here are just a few examples of how National Securities employees have allegedly violated FINRA rules:

Several older investors reportedly fell victim to the scam, including a former police officer

From 2013 to 2014, several senior citizens living in South Florida invested over $400,000 in Blue Ocean Farm, a fish farm company. Three purported financial professionals reportedly solicited funds for the farm – Rebecca Gonzalez and Matthew Braun of Boca Raton and Michael Creamer of St. Petersburg. There was just one problem: the Florida Department of Law Enforcement says that the company was completely bogus.

The scheme was allegedly spearheaded by Gonzalez, and now she, Braun, and Creamer are facing several charges, including fraud, selling unregistered securities, and the sale of securities by an unregistered person. The trio reportedly targeted six older investors, all of which handed over thousands of dollars.

According to some reports, nearly 1/3 of National Securities brokers have had regulatory issues, legal disputes, or personal financial problems that have been disclosed to investors

National Securities Corporation is one of the oldest financial firms in the U.S., dating back over 70 years. Its the main office is in Seattle, Washington, but the company has licenses to operate in every state in the country, as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.

National Securities Corporation is registered with the SEC and three self-regulatory organizations: Nasdaq, Cboe BZX Exchanged, Inc., and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) – and it is with the latter agency that the company has come under intense scrutiny over the last couple of decades.

Once a prominent Methodist pastor in Houston, Texas, Kirbyjon Caldwell is now charged by the SEC with numerous counts of money laundering and wire fraud. The charges are directly related to a scheme Caldwell and his partner, Gregory Alan Smith – a self-proclaimed financial advisor who was also charged – allegedly used to defraud elderly investors by selling them an interest in defunct, pre-Revolutionary Chinese bonds.

It is alleged that in 2013 and 2014, Caldwell and Smith singled out vulnerable investors to invest in bonds that had no more value than being collectible memorabilia – promising instead that they were worth millions.

Retirement planning firm owner allegedly paid for lavish living expenses and more with elderly investors’ money

It has happened again. The Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) has uncovered yet another alleged Ponzi scheme targeting the most vulnerable of investors: the elderly. Clifton Stanley of Galveston, Texas is accused of cheating his elderly investors – those in their eighties and nineties – out of $3.8 million dollars in two related scams.

Binary Options fraud is on the rise in recent years as regulators and government agencies continue to receive hundreds of complaints with damages totaling in the millions of dollars in the United States alone. The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) has issued a Fraud Advisory concerning Binary Options due to the increased number of victims of these schemes. The CFTC, as part of its efforts to reduce this fraudulent activity, maintains a list of foreign entities that illegally solicit U.S. residents to trade binary options and forex without being registered with the CFTC as required by securities laws. This allows investors to protect themselves against this type of illegal activity.

CFTC and Designated Contract Markets

It is illegal for entities to solicit, accept offers, offer to or enter into commodity options transactions with US persons, unless those options transactions are conducted on a designated contract market. This includes contracts for foreign currencies and metals just to name a few. To determine whether an entity/platform is a designated contract market, you can check the CFTC’s website.

While some binary options are listed and traded on registered exchanges, the majority of binary options trade via Internet-based trading platforms that do not necessarily comply with U.S. regulatory requirements. This means that in addition to the risks associated with the purchase or sale of binary options, there is a higher risk of fraud based upon the unregulated online trading platforms they use.

The internet-based trading platforms typically used for trading binary options allow perpetrators of binary option fraud to find their victims on the internet. These websites are usually operated by individuals overseas and these companies go to great lengths to get investors. Once an investor sends money to the platform it is unlikely that he/she will ever see that money back from the fraudsters.

The individuals operating these platforms usually find a way to keep the investor’s money. Whether by changing the terms of the binary option so as to make it a “losing” bet or by simply placing a freeze on the account when the investor tries to make a withdrawal, the only thing that is certain is that investors will not be getting that money back from the fraudsters.

Due to the overseas operations of most of these trading platforms, bringing the criminals to justice and getting investor funds back is usually very difficult. However, our law firm looks at all potential responsible parties for recovery.

CFTC’s RED List

The CFTC has created a list of foreign entities that illegally solicit U.S. resident to trade in binary options and forex. It is called the “RED List” which stands for “Registration Deficient.” These entities are required to be registered with the CFTC in order to solicit and accept funds from U.S. retail investors for trading in binary options and forex.

The Silver Law Group can help you bring a claim against all of the responsible parties to help you recover your losses. If an investor suffers losses as a result of binary option fraud they may still be able recover their losses from those that facilitate the fraud. Contact the Silver Law Group today at ssilver@silverlaw.com or call us toll free at (855) 755-4799. You can also fill out the form on this page and one of our attorneys will contact you.

Binary Options fraud is on the rise in recent years as regulators and government agencies continue to receive hundreds of complaints with losses totaling in the millions of dollars in the United States alone. The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) has issued a Fraud Advisory concerning Binary Options due to the increased number of victims of these schemes. The CFTC is hoping to educate investors in order to prevent them from falling victim to these schemes.

What are Binary Options?

Binary options are essentially betting contracts. A binary option is a type of option contract in which the payout is “all or nothing” depending on the outcome of a yes/no proposition. The contract specifies a return depending on the price of the underlying asset at a particular date and time. For example: 10% return if the price of ABC stock is above $9.37 at 4pm on December 1st 20xx. If the answer is yes you get the promised return and if the answer is no you get nothing.

The term “option” in binary option is misleading. Unlike the traditional option contracts that give the investor the right to exercise the option and purchase or sell the underlying asset, binary options do not give investors any “option.” Binary option contracts are automatically exercised at expiration and either give the investor the predetermined return or nothing at all. There is no right or obligation to purchase or sell the underlying asset.

Differences Between Traditional Options and Binary Options

Binary options are very different from traditional option contracts. While option contracts are generally well known investment products with known risks and trade on established trading exchanges, binary options differ significantly in associated risks and trading. While some binary options are listed and traded on registered exchanges, the majority of binary options trade via Internet-based trading platforms that do not necessarily comply with U.S. regulatory requirements. This means that in addition to the risks associated with the purchase or sale of binary options, there is a higher risk of fraud based upon the unregulated online trading platforms they use.

CFTC and Designated Contract Markets

It is illegal for entities to solicit, accept offers, offer to or enter into commodity options transactions with US persons, unless those options transactions are conducted on a designated contract market. This includes contract for foreign currencies and metals just to name a few. To determine whether an entity/platform is a designated contract market, you can check the CFTC’s website.

The internet-based trading platforms typically used for trading binary options allow perpetrators of binary option fraud to find their victims on the internet. These websites are usually operated by individuals overseas and these companies go to great lengths to get investors. Once an investor sends money to the platform it is unlikely that he/she will ever see that money back from the fraudsters.

The individuals operating these platforms usually find a way to keep the investor’s money. Whether by changing the terms of the binary option so as to make it a “losing” bet or by simply placing a freeze on the account when the investor tries to make a withdrawal, the only thing that is certain is that investors will not be getting that money back from the fraudsters.

Due to the overseas operations of most of these trading platforms, bringing the criminals to justice and getting investor funds back is usually very difficult. However, our law firm looks at all potential responsible parties for recovery.

CFTC’s RED List

The CFTC has created a list of foreign entities that illegally solicit U.S. resident to trade in binary options and Forex. It is called the “RED List” which stands for “Registration Deficient.” These entities are required to be registered with the CFTC in order to solicit and accept funds from U.S. retail investors for trading in binary options and forex.

The Silver Law Group can help you bring a claim against all of the responsible parties to help you recover your losses. If an investor suffers losses as a result of binary option fraud they may still be able recover their losses from those that facilitate the fraud. Contact the Silver Law Group today at ssilver@silverlaw.com or call us toll free at (855) 755-4799. You can also fill out the form on this page and one of our attorneys will contact you.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. is the first bank in a multi-defendant class action lawsuit to settle claims relating to allegations that the banks rigged the foreign exchange market. Commonly referred to as the Forex market, over 5 trillion dollars a day is traded as investors rely on the honesty of the marketplace to trade currencies. According to various news reports, Chase has agreed to pay about $100 million under the agreement. A Federal Judge in New York must still approve the settlement. This settlement comes on the heels of a regulatory settlement where JPMorgan agreed to pay $1 billion as part of $4.3 billion in fines paid by six banks to resolve foreign-exchange rate investigations by regulators in the U.S., the U.K. and Switzerland.

Wall Street’s largest banks were some of the largest traders in foreign currency. However, despite the façade of respectability large banks claim, traders allegedly frequently communicated in chat rooms using names such as “The Cartel,” “The Bandits’ Club” and “The Mafia” to share confidential client information and manipulate certain benchmark rates. Investors were harmed by trading at manipulated prices and frequently paying substantial fees, costs and commissions for investors Forex trading activity.

Silver Law Group represents investors in securities and investment fraud cases. Our lawyers are admitted to practice in New York and Florida and represent investors nationwide to help recover investment losses due to stockbroker misconduct. Our attorneys have represented investors in Forex cases and in NFA arbitrations against registered commodities firms. If you have any questions about how your account has been handled, call to speak with an experienced securities attorney. Most cases handled on a contingent fee basis meaning that you do not pay legal fees unless we are successful.